The capital,
The Grand Secretariat,
After reading two memorial reports, Xu Jie’s hands were trembling.
He took a deep breath to calm himself slightly, then neatly stacked the two memorials and placed them inside his robes. Mustering his spirits, he put on a façade of normalcy and ordered,
“Someone, prepare my sedan chair. I must go to Prince Yu’s residence.”
This time,
Observant eyes noticed that Gao Gong, who was usually inseparable from Xu Jie, remained seated, holding a memorial report as if reading it, but not truly looking. And Xu Jie, who would normally have taken Gao Gong with him, did not even glance at Gao Gong today. He left alone.
Xu Jie quickly arrived at Prince Yu’s residence. As he alighted from his sedan chair and saw no one around, he rushed inside. However, after just two steps, he cried out, stumbled, and nearly fell on the steps.
“Inform the Prince! Something has happened!”
Ignoring the pain, he dragged his left foot and strode forward, pulling out the two memorials from his robes. The piercing pain made his whole body tremble.
But at this moment, how could this pain matter?
…
Prince Yu rushed out and helped him up, saying urgently,
“Grand Secretary Xu, how can you be so careless? At your age…”
Xu Jie, gasping for breath, said, “Your Highness, here are two memorials. Please read them quickly. After you have read them, I will have them sent back to the Grand Secretariat…”
Prince Yu read them one by one but did not grasp the full implication. He countered,
“These? Is there something wrong with them?”
Although Xu Jie was his tutor, he had lost his patience at this moment and stated directly,
“Your Highness, these two memorials arrived at the Grand Secretariat one after another, almost simultaneously… Your Highness, this means something momentous is about to happen! The first one reports that Yin Zhengmao apprehended over three hundred rioters in Huzhou. We do not yet know the outcome of their trial! This second one is a memorial signed by the heads of a hundred academies nationwide, along with over three hundred officials, demanding that Yangming Philosophy be established as official doctrine. Your Highness, do you not find this strange?”
“Er… this? It’s a lot of people, but it’s also a serious matter. What does it have to do with this memorial from Huzhou?”
Prince Yu still had not realized.
Xu Jie sighed inwardly and said, “Your Highness, please look at this letter…”
As he spoke, he took out a secret letter from his son, Xu Ying, which discussed various rumors circulating among the Jiangnan gentry, such as ‘reform through bloodshed.’ The main thrust was that the time had come to abolish Zhu Mo’s reforms.
“Reform through bloodshed… What is this? What is this?”
At this moment,
Prince Yu’s heart skipped a beat, and he understood everything—
The plan was to kill the populace while establishing official academies! And the ultimate goal was to target Zhu Mo’s reforms…
Last time, they attempted to coerce officials into taking sides by using a decisive battle, intending for Anda to kill Zhu Mo, but it did not succeed. This time, it was a complete, no-holds-barred forced alignment. After all, nine out of ten scholars and gentry in the empire were followers of Confucianism.
At this moment,
Prince Yu realized that Xu Jie had come alone. Gao Gong, who was always with him, was nowhere to be seen. As he was about to ask, he already understood—
Yin Zhengmao was Gao Gong’s disciple…
Yin Zhengmao’s killing of the populace below was most likely instigated by Gao Gong, which was why Xu Jie had secretly hurried over alone…
“Alas…”
Prince Yu, having understood, could only heave a long sigh and murmur,
“Why must it be this way? If it comes to this, the realm will descend into chaos…”
Xu Jie could no longer contain his anger. He scoffed, “Gao Shuqing, Gao Shuqing, how could you be so foolish! To do something like this at this time!”
…
As night fell,
Gao Gong’s residence.
His disciples Wu Dui and Lu Huang, his contemporary friend Yang Zongqi, and several confidants from the Ministry of Revenue were all in the study. Everyone sat motionless, and Gao Gong himself sat sternly in the central Grand Tutor’s chair.
Everyone knew Gao Gong’s temperament, and no one spoke frivolously.
For many years,
They had all known Gao Gong’s ambition, which was to reform, to fully restore the system of the sages. He had written some manuscripts, which he had never made public, but these trusted confidants had all seen them.
The world knew that Zhang Juzheng was devoted to reform, but they knew that the truly radical reformer was Gao Gong. He intended to use Legalist methods to comprehensively promote the “system of the sages.” However, because Legalism could not be openly mentioned, these manuscripts had remained secret.
Among these disciples,
Yang Zongqi currently served as the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief. His position was not high, and he was already advanced in years. His usual conduct was akin to Gao Gong’s shadow, doing whatever he was told. Wu Dui was a rare talent among the disciples, currently serving as the Vice Commissioner of Military Preparedness in Jizhou, assisting Yang Bo in planning military affairs, possessing considerable talent. Lu Huang was a trusted confidant of Gao Gong, the Minister of Revenue, in the ministry, always flattering him. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Although Wu Dui revered Gao Gong’s ideology, seeing him engage in such an unbelievable conspiracy at this moment, he began to waver—
If this continued, there would surely be no good outcome…
His esteemed master was acting against the natural order, serving as Yan Song’s pawn. Even if they destroyed Zhu Mo this time, or even became the Chief Grand Secretary, what then? How would the world view him?
But his master was his master after all. He thought this, but he dared not live by it.
Gao Gong naturally understood their thoughts. He had summoned them today to lay bare his intentions. He coughed and said,
“What are your thoughts? You can speak freely…”
Wu Dui wanted to speak but suddenly restrained himself.
Yang Zongqi said, “Esteemed Minister, Zhu Mo’s reforms have incurred the wrath of both gods and men. The unruly commoners punished by Magistrate Yin this time were, in the final analysis, incited by Zhu Mo. They should be severely punished to serve as a warning. Otherwise, in a few more years, they will grow completely out of control… Hmph!”
Lu Huang added, “I agree. My master often says that to act with the methods of thunder and the heart of a Bodhisattva. Magistrate Yin’s actions are precisely that! Zhu Mo’s reforms shake the orthodox lineage of the sages and must be stopped! And my master is striving to rectify the deviation, which is a measure of adapting to circumstances according to the classics, demonstrating great wisdom and courage. The gentry of the empire will surely be convinced. When my master governs in the future, with a swift change, the empire will naturally be well-ordered.”
His disciples also echoed their agreement: “We all agree.”
Gao Gong nodded, then stood up. He paused in thought for a moment and said,
“Junze, what about you? What is your opinion?”
Wu Dui thought to himself: Yin Zhengmao is so cruel, and you all praise him… Even if it is for the sake of ‘using law to assist Confucianism and establish the system of the sages,’ doing it this way is not upright or open. In the end, how will the people of the empire agree? It will only lead to ruin and infamy…
But at his master’s inquiry, he could not object. He merely said, “To honor Yangming Philosophy as official doctrine. To rank it alongside Cheng-Zhu, I, your student, completely agree. However…”
Gao Gong’s expression suddenly softened, and he smiled, “However, what?”
Wu Dui coughed and said, “However, I do not agree with Magistrate Yin’s methods. Although those rioters spoke of restoring the Grand Ancestor’s principles, that is not rebellion, is it? Ignorant villagers, only knowing the Grand Ancestor’s greatness, spoke loosely. They cannot be taken seriously…”